The Dark Storm Rises: Freshman Year
by Ghost 266
Summary: A new student enters Duel Academy! Well that's not unusual. What is unusual are the circumstances surrounding his year. Follow Ryan as he unlocks an ancient legend, makes new friends, learns the secrets of the Shadows, and defends the world from an ancient foe and its minions intent on wreaking havoc across the world. Look out, world. You ain't seen nothing yet.
1. Prologue: The Dark Storm

Prologue: The Storm

The young man stood on top of the dune, surrounded by the swirling dark storm. He was afraid, yet strangely exhilarated at the same had seen some pretty amazing stuff in his life, but this definitely took the cake.

So here he was, fulfilling his destiny- or at least taking one step closer to it. Soon he would have all the power he needed to show that worthless old man that he was the only person worthy, that he was the one written in the prophecy. Soon, world would know his power. Soon, the world would remember its most ancient roots and bow down to him.

_What is your purpose in coming here?_ the storm asked, its mental voice tearing through his head. He opened his mouth to reply, but the storm never gave him the chance. _Of course. You wish for power, power to take what you believe is rightfully yours, to become the greatest of all. What else do humans want? That is why they make such good... partners._ The dark voice's tone made the young man suspect it was going to say something besides "partners", but he let it slide. _Help me to rise, and I will grant your every wish._

He didn't know what the storm wanted to do once it had risen. He knew it was powerful, far more powerful than anything he had ever encountered before. He knew it had the power to enslave the entire world- or destroy it.

He just didn't care. He accepted the storm's offer.


	2. Chapter 1: Last Call!

**Alright, here's the first real chapter. **

**Rating is T for language and violence. Not much violence, no big, bad no-no words. I think.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! in any way, shape or form. I wish...**

* * *

Chapter 1- Last Call!

_Long ago, when the pyramids were still young, Egyptian kings played a game of great and terrible power. They did battle with magic and monsters, for riches and glory. From these Shadow Games erupted a war that threatened to destroy the world, until a brave and powerful Pharaoh locked the dark magic away, imprisoning it for all eternity, within the mystical Millennium Items. _

_But even eternity doesn't last forever._

_It was never to happen, and for 5000 years, it never did. But while the desert does its best to conceal that which should remain buried, it eventually yields its most ancient and terrible secrets._ _The Shadow Games begin again._ (1)

"Last call for all Academy applicants. If you have not checked in for your exam, please do so now."

A boy ran into the room where Duel Academy's entrance exams were taking place. He was wearing a red shirt and jeans, with a dark blue high collar jacket. He had a red backpack on his back, brown hair, and light hazel eyes. He bent over double with his hands on his knees, panting from his long run.

"Made it…" he wheezed, struggling to get his breath back. " Next time… no matter… how busy they are… either Mom… or Dad… is giving me a ride…." He straightened up. "Okay, so now what?"

As he looked around, he saw that the room he was standing in was huge. In the middle was one big Duel stadium, broken down into four Duel Fields, all with entrance duels that were just wrapping up. Surrounding the stadium on all sides were bleachers, with a large body of student Duelists watching the ongoing duels. The overall awesomeness took his breath away. As he was looking around, a large white sign with red letters caught his eye. It read, "CHECK IN HERE." The line was empty.

He suddenly had a realization. _Crud! I probably have to sign in so I can take the exam!_ Without further ado, he immediately sprinted off towards the sign.

* * *

A man… woman... person with an atrocious fashion sense was sitting in the bleachers, watching who would be his (wait, that's a guy? Why would anyone make a guy look like that?! Stupid show makers) students battle the proctors.

Another man walked up to him. "Sorry about this, but one last applicant just ran up to us to take his exam, Mr. Crowler."

The fashion-killing Crowler looked at him with a dangerous eye. "Did you just call me "mister?"" he asked in a high-pitched voice.

The second nameless man was clueless as to what he meant. "Oh, sorry about that. I'm new here Mrs."

"EXCUSE ME, BUT I AM A MAN! A MAN WHO HAS A PhD IN DUELING I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW! YOU SHOULD PROPERLY ADRESS ME AS 'DOCTOR!'" Crowler raged on the unfortunate newbie. Abruptly, he calmed down. "Tell the truant that he'll just have to try again next year."

Suddenly, a cell phone went off. Crowler frowned, and then reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. "Yes, who is this? I'm currently very busy at the moment-"

"It's Brown," replied the caller, cutting him off.

"Oh, Chancellor, it's you (2)!" Crowler exclaimed, completely re-saying what his boss had just said. "I was just about to wrap things up here-"

"I just wanted to remind you that all students who do show up deserve a fair chance," his boss interrupted him again. "We don't want a repeat of last year, do we? A third of potential students cut because they called you "mister" or "missus"?" Crowler winced; he had taken a substantial pay cut for that. "Just remember to let them all get a shot." And with that, Chancellor Brown hung up.

Crowler's eyes darkened. "Fine then," he muttered. He stood up then addressed the nameless newbie. "Tell the latecomer that he can have his duel."

"But who should be his opponent? And what exam deck should be used?" the newbie asked.

Crowler strode off, eyes glinting with glee. "Leave that to me."

* * *

**And we're off! Sorry it's so short, but hopefully the next chapter makes up for it. Hope you liked it. Please give me feedback. Please!**

**1. Most of this is word-for-word from the Pyramid of Light Movie. I took out a few sentences and added the last one.**

**2. Chancellor Sheppard does not exist (he might be in another, less important role). Chancellor Brown is my own creation. This is just one of the many, many, MANY things I have changed.**


	3. Chapter 2: The Entrance Exam

**So here's the second chapter of TDSRFY. Hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Do I haveta do this every chapter...?**

* * *

Chapter 2: The Entrance Exam

The Duelist in question lounged against the wall, flipping a quarter in his hand, waiting for the verdict of whether or not he would get to take the exam.

_Come on, it shouldn't take this long to say yes or no! What's going on?_ He thought to himself.

A spectral figure appeared next to him, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. This figure was covered in black armor with lots of sliver spikes from head to toe and had twin swords in each hand.

**"Do not worry, Ryan. I'm sure that there is a good excuse for this wait. It will not be long now, I can feel it." ** The spirit said.

The Duelist, Ryan, grunted.

"Ryan Anderson, please proceed to Duel Field 4."

Ryan's eyes snapped open at the PA's announcement. He looked at the armored figure and smiled wolfishly. "Time to do what we do best, Blade." The spirit nodded and disappeared. Placing the quarter in his back pocket, Ryan started walking down to the now-empty Duel Fields.

As Ryan walked down to the Duel Field, he couldn't help but notice that there were no other fields being used anymore; he was the last to take the exam. And thus, that meant he had the attention of all the other bored students that were waiting to leave for the Academy.

ALL.

THE.

STUDENTS.

It was going to be a long day.

When he reached the field, he took off his backpack and fished out his KaibaCorp Duel Disk and his deck. He slotted the Deck into the Deck Zone, and activated the disk. As the blades moved into position, he noticed his opponent walking onto the field.

"You don't look like a student," he observed, looking at the man-woman-person that was his opponent. "Are you sure you're my opponent?"

"You're correct; I'm not a student. The name's Doctor Vellian Crowler, one of the teachers at Duelist Academy and the head of the Obelisk Blue dorm."

"Ah. So, what's up, doc?" the student body chuckled and Crowler bristled. "To be specific, what's up with the weird Duel Disk?" Crowler didn't have a conventional Disk; instead he had a circular Disk hub strapped to his chest, only holding the Deck Zone and the Graveyard. The Monster, Spell, and Trap Zones were on a single blade that resembled a guitar the doctor held in one hand.

"This is my Duel Coat. Very nice, isn't it? You could probably get one like it with more hard work and dedication than you could ever have in your life," Crowler explained. "Now are there any more questions, or can we duel?"

"Just one more question. Are you a man or a woman?" Ryan asked, grinning. When he heard this, Crowler fell over anime-style and the students watching laughed.

Six students all the same age stood on a balcony above the bleachers, watching the exchange (1). The first was a dark blonde-haired girl with blue eyes, wearing a simple green t-shirt and jeans. To her right, leaning on the railing was a brown-haired boy with brown eyes, a white shirt, a black jacket with glaring red eyes on the back and black pants. To his right (basically the next people are standing to the right of the pervious person), was another boy, shorter than all the others, with curly black hair and deep brown, almost black, eyes. He had a white jacket with red edges, and blue pants. Next to him was a girl, a lot taller than him, with long brown hair, hazel eyes, a blue shirt, jeans, and a leather jacket. After her was another guy, the tallest of the group by a couple inches, with blonde hair and blue eyes. His well-muscled frame was partially concealed by his golden jacket and black slacks. The last student was a girl with black hair and light blue eyes. She had a purple shirt and jeans (2).When they heard Ryan's question, the boy with the black jacket and the short boy burst out laughing, the third guy and the last two girls smiled, but the first girl looked worried.

"That's not good," she murmured.

Black Jacket pulled himself together and asked, still grinning, "What do you mean, Alexis? That was funny!" The other boy, still unable to contain his chuckles, nodded in agreement.

The girl, Alexis, gestured toward Crowler. "I just mean that now Crowler is going to get angry, and he's going to go all-out just for that remark."

Purple Shirt asked, "Isn't that a good thing? If Crowler loses his head, then won't this guy, Ryan, have a better chance of winning?"

"I think I see what she's trying to say Sarah," Yellow Jacket said. "Basically, Crowler's going to do everything in his power to cream this guy. Forget about trying to test his skills and potential, he's just gonna try and make him pay. Right, Alexis?"

Alexis nodded and returned her interest to the beginning of the Duel.

"I BEG YOUR PARDON! I AM A MAN! A MAN! NOT A WOMAN!" Crowler shrieked, his face red. "WHY DOES EVERYONE THINK I'M A WOMAN?!"

"Probably 'cause of your fashion statement," Ryan replied calmly.

The doctor glared at him, absolutely livid. First he questions his gender, then he insults his dress! He would make sure that this buffoon would never get into the Academy!

"Fine, then! Let's get this over with!" Crowler said angrily.

"'Bout time!" Ryan answered. "Bring it on!" They both drew five cards from their respective decks and their Life Point counters obediently jumped to 4000.

"I'll go first," Ryan declared as he drew a card, looked at it, then placed it into his hand. "And I'll start by Summoning Dark Blade, in Attack Mode!"

**_Dark Blade _**

**__****_Dark/ _**Level 4

**_Warrior_**

**_ATK: 1800 DEF: 1600_**

The black-armored figure from before emerged in a flash of light, twin swords ready for use.

"And now I'll equip him with the Spell, Black Pendant!"

**_Black Pendant_**

**_Equip Spell Card_**

**_The equipped monster gains 500 ATK. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, inflict 500 damage to your opponent._**

The Warrior's ATK rose to 2300 as a necklace settled itself around his neck. He pointed his sword at Crowler and said "**Time for you to go down, clown!**" Most people, including Crowler, had no idea that he had spoken. But up in the stands, the six students all narrowed their eyes.

"So he has a Spirit Partner, too…" muttered Shorty.

"Then I'll set one card and end my turn. Okay, doc, your move."

"I would expect that kind of move from a beginner," Crowler said arrogantly. "Now let me show you how a _real_ Duelist does it!"

He put his hand up near his deck and it automatically ejected the top card into his hand. He looked at it and smirked.

"Alright, Bryan-" "No. It's Ryan," Ryan interjected quickly. "Whatever, now take notes so that you know what to do when you come back to take the test next year. First off, I'll set two cards. Then I'll play the Spell Heavy Storm."

**_Heavy Storm_**

**_ Normal Spell Card_**

**_ Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field._**

A large gust of wind suddenly started to blow all over the field. It revealed and destroyed Ryan's set Draining Shield as well as Black Pendant and Crowler's two set Statues of the Wicked. Because Black Pendant was destroyed, Dark Blade's ATK dropped back to 1800. As the necklace was destroyed, a bolt of lightning blasted out of the jewel and hit Crowler directly in the face.

"AARGH!" Crowler flinched. "What was that?!"

"Oh, the doctor with the PhD in Dueling doesn't know what a simple Spell Card's ability does?" Ryan taunted. "Whenever Black Pendant is destroyed, it inflicts 500 points of damage."

The "good" doctor's Life Points dropped from 4000 to 3500.

_Crowler: 3500 - Ryan: 4000_

Crowler shrugged. "It does not matter, because my two Statues of the Wicked were destroyed face-down-" Crowler was interrupted by Ryan before he finished his explanation. "Yeah, I know what that card does, doc, it gives you two Wicked Tokens." As he finished speaking, the two tokens appeared on the field.

**_Statue of the Wicked_**

**_Normal Trap Card_**

**_When this face-down card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Wicked Token" (Fiend-Type/DARK/Level 4 /ATK 1000/DEF 1000) on your side of the field._**

"And they're not gonna stay for long, 'cause you're gonna tribute them, right?" Ryan asked rhetorically; he already knew the answer to that question.

"You're smarter than you look. I'll tribute my two Wicked Tokens to Tribute Summon my Ancient Gear Golem in Attack Mode!"

**_Ancient Gear Golem_**

**__****_Earth/ _**Level 8

**_Machine/ Effect_**

**_Cannot be Special Summoned. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing Battle Damage to your opponent. If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate any Spell/Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step._**

**_ATK: 3000 DEF: 3000_**

A giant rust-covered warrior rose up with giant exposed gears and only one working eye.

"Wait a minute, that's not an exam deck!" Shorty hissed angrily.

Leather Jacket nodded in agreement. "That's his own deck, with all the rare and powerful cards!"

They all looked at each other for a long moment before Sarah asked sadly, "The kid's doomed, isn't he?" The rest, except for the shorty, all nodded and turned back to what they figured to be a slaughter.

Crowler was laughing as his giant robot stared down his opponent. "Not so high and mighty now, are we? Ancient Gear Golem, destroy his Dark Blade!"

The giant golem punched the dark warrior, making it explode into holographic card particles and dropping Ryan's Life Points from 4000 to 2800. As Ryan slotted his Spirit Partner into the Graveyard, he whispered a quiet apology.

_Crowler: 3500 - Ryan: 2800_

"Hahahaha! You're puny deck is no match for mine! Have fun next year, Bryan. I'll be sure to be watching!" Crowler mocked.

"Listen up, doc, I don't care if you insult me," Ryan snapped, "but nobody, and I mean _nobody_ insults my deck and gets away with it! And my name is Ryan! Is it my turn yet?!"

Crowler smirked. He had turned the tables on the youngster, and now it was him who had blown his top. "Yes, I am done."

"About time!" Ryan drew and frowned at the card he had just drawn. "I'll set a monster. You're move."

"Alright, and I'll be sure to make it count!" Crowler sneered as his card was ejected into his hand. Looking at it he thought _a few more moves and I'll be able to finish him! It's too bad, because I would have liked to use my ultimate monster on him. _Pointing at Ryan's facedown, he commanded, "Ancient Gear Golem, destroy his face-down card!"

The rust-covered machine once again punched the card. Only this time, just before being destroyed, it flipped and revealed a bug that looked rather hungry.

"You've activated my Man-Eater Bug's Effect!" Ryan stated happily. "Now, although I take a boatload of damage from your Golem's piercing ability, since you flipped my bug, I get to destroy one other monster on the field. And I choose…" he paused for dramatic effect, even though everyone already knew what he was going to destroy, "… your Ancient Gear Golem!"

**_Man-Eater Bug _**

**__****_Earth/ _**Level 2

**_Insect/ Effect_**

**_FLIP: Destroy 1 monster on the field._**

**_ATK: 450 DEF: 600_**

The machine's fist punched the insect, and Ryan grunted as his Life Points dropped to 400. However, instead of being destroyed, the bug first latched its fangs into the golem, taking it with it as they both exploded.

_Crowler: 3500 - Ryan: 400_

"That kid's got guts," Yellow Jacket stated in awe. "Taking so much damage just to destroy that thing…"

"Will, do you really believe that?" Leather Jacket argued. "That move wasn't gutsy, it was careless, risky, and showed he was backed into a corner." Black Jacket nodded in agreement.

"I dunno, Karen," Shorty answered. "I think it was something like an incomplete combo, like he didn't have the right other card with it that could prevent that damage. Y'know what I mean?"

"Maybe, Nick. But I'd have to agree with Karen. That was a very risky move, and has it really paid off?" Alexis asked.

"How dare you destroy my golem!" Crowler shrieked. Glaring angrily at Ryan, he took another card from his hand. "I play the Spell Ancient Gear Workshop!"

**_Ancient Gear Workshop_**

**_Normal Spell Card_**

**_Add 1 "Ancient Gear" monster from your Graveyard to your hand._**

"This card allows me to add one "Ancient Gear" monster to my hand from the Graveyard, so I'll choose my Ancient Gear Golem." The doctor looked at his hand again. _If I can just draw one more monster next turn, I'll win for sure! _He thought gleefully to himself. "I'll end at that."

Ryan drew and narrowed his eyes at the card. _Well, I could have used this a while ago_. "I Summon Mataza the Zapper in Attack Mode."

**_Mataza the Zapper _**

**__****_Dark/ _**Level 3

**_Warrior/ Effect_**

**_This monster can attack twice during the same Battle Phase. Control of this card cannot switch._**

**_ATK: 1300 DEF: 800 _**

The warrior in green samurai armor appeared silently. Ryan smirked as he pointed at the defenseless Crowler. "Mataza, attack him directly!"

The warrior obediently ran at Crowler, drawing his sword with a flash. The samurai disappeared before reappearing right in front of Crowler. The sword slashed right where the Duel Disk hub was. Being a hologram, it of course didn't hurt or touch Crowler, but the doctor still flinched as his Life Points dropped to 2200.

_Crowler: 2200 - Ryan: 400_

"And that's not all. Mataza has a really cool effect, too! He can attack twice during the same Battle Phase! So go Mataza! Samurai Sword Slash!"

Again, the warrior disappeared and appeared right in front of Crowler, his sword shining as he slashed at him, dropping his Life Points to 900.

_Crowler: 900 - Ryan: 400_

"I'll end after I set these two cards. Looks like you need to kick it up a notch, doc."

"No, I already have this Duel in the bag!" Crowler declared snidely as his Duel Coat ejected the top card into his hand. Looking at it, his eyes widened and he started to laugh. Watching him, Ryan grew uneasy. _Crud, what did he just draw? And why is he laughing so hard?_

"Looks like I'll be able to end the Duel here and now!" Crowler crowed as he revealed another card in his hand. "I play the Spell Card Polymerization!"

**_Polymerization_**

**_Normal Spell Card_**

**_Send, from your hand or your side of the field to the Graveyard, the Fusion Material Monsters that are listed on a Fusion Monster Card, then Special Summon that monster from your Extra Deck._**

"Now I send from my hand my Ancient Gear Golem, my Ancient Gear Beast, and my Ancient Gear from my hand to Summon the Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!"

**_Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem _**

**__****_Earth/ _**Level 10

**_Machine/ Fusion/ Effect_**

**_"Ancient Gear Golem" + 2 "Ancient Gear" monsters  
This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Fusion Summon. During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent. If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate Spell or Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step. If this card is destroyed, you can Special Summon 1 "Ancient Gear Golem" you're your Graveyard, ignoring the Summoning conditions._**

**_ATK: 4400 DEF: 3400_**

The giant rusty golden machine rose up. Aside from the color, from the waist up it looked like Ancient Gear Golem, but from the waist down it had four legs and looked like a centaur.

"Well… [censored]," Ryan whispered as he looked up the monster towering above him.

"Well, he's doomed," Black Jacket stated as he turned away from the Duel.

"Come on, Greg, give him a chance!" Nick said, turning towards his friend.

"Nick, there's no way in hell he's gonna be able to destroy that behemoth! I mean, look at it! It's Crowler's pride and joy, and his strongest monster to boot. As much as I want Crowler to lose, there's just no way Ryan can win."

"I think Greg's right, Nick," Will agreed sadly as the others all nodded. "He had a good run, but that monster is just too strong. It's a shame too, because it looks like he's a very talented Duelist."

Nick could only turn back to the Duel, hoping against hope that his friends were wrong, and that the new kid could still pull it off. And he was astounded to see that Ryan was _grinning_ was he looked up at the monster.

"So Bryan-" "For the last time, it's Ryan!" "- how do you like my ultimate monster?" Crowler asked, grinning like a schoolboy.

"I have to say, it's a very impressive monster, doc," Ryan answered, his lack of fear shocking everyone. "But before you do any attacking with it, I'm afraid you'll have to get acquainted with my face-downs!" As he spoke, his two set cards rose up and began to shine. "First, my Interdimensional Matter Transporter, which removes my Mataza the Zapper from play until the End Phase." A futuristic machine appeared next to the warrior and warped it into another dimension. Ryan slipped the card into his pocket. "Next, The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh lets me add Kuriboh from my deck to my hand." Ryan then picked one card from his deck and put it in his hand. He looked directly at Crowler and asked, "Okay, doc, what are you going to do?"

**_Interdimensional Matter Transporter_**

**_Normal Trap Card_**

**_Target 1 face-up monster you control; banish that target until the End Phase._**

**_The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh_**

**_Quick-Play Spell Card_**

**_Add 1 "Kuriboh" or 1 "Winged Kuriboh" from your Deck to your hand, OR Special Summon 1 "Kuriboh" or 1 "Winged Kuriboh" from your Deck._**

**_Kuriboh _**

**__****_Dark/ _**Level 1

**_Fiend/ Effect_**

**_During either player's turn, at damage calculation: You can discard this card; you take no Battle Damage from that battle._**

**_ATK: 300 DEF: 200_**

"Why did he get rid of his only monster?" Greg asked incredulously. "Now he's defenseless!"

Alexis kept her eyes on the Duel as she answered. "No, Kuriboh lets him negate Battle Damage from one battle. And with one monster and no cards in his hand, Crowler can only attack once. Not a bad play at all."

Crowler's eyes narrowed as he thought. _Even if I attack, he'll just negate the damage with his furball. But if I don't attack, then he could keep that card around for him to use later at his convenience. So, it seems my only option is to burn that Kuriboh out of his hand! _"Ultimate Golem, get rid of that Kuriboh! Attack directly!"

"And of course, I'm discarding Kuriboh to negate the damage," Ryan stated as he slid the card into the Graveyard. The giant golem began to punch at Ryan, but it was intercepted by a small brown furball with large yellow eyes. As soon as the Machine-type Monster's attack hit Kuriboh, it exploded into little card pieces.

"And, during your End Phase, Mataza comes back," Ryan stated as he slipped the card out of his pocket and back onto his Duel Disk. The green samurai appeared silently once again.

"So you're low-leveled monsters save you again. It makes me wonder if you have only weak cards in that pitiful deck of yours," the doctor rudely sneered

Ryan's eyes suddenly hardened. "Listen here, doc, because I'm only going to say this once. None of my cards are weak. Some may be low-leveled, with a small ATK or DEF, but they're all in for a purpose. This deck is the greatest thing I've ever owned, and probably the greatest thing I ever will own! As long as we keep evolving as a team, we can never be defeated! Enjoy your pathetic gloating now while you can, because I'll defeat you next turn."

"You wish!" Crowler screeched. He hasn't been this aggravated since that Slifer slacker was still in the Academy! (3) He'd be sure to make sure that this joker would never get into Duel Academy.

"I know! And it looks like I need to kick it up a notch and prove it with my Shining Draw!" (4) Ryan placed his hand on top of his deck, exhaled, and closed his eyes. Everybody's eyes were on him, and it was suddenly very quiet in the building. Even Crowler was leaning forward with interest.

Very slowly and deliberately, Ryan pulled the top card of the deck, imagining that he was pulling the one card he needed to win up to the top, card by card. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open and he jerked his arm out straight. He looked at the card and smirked. "Oh yeah. This will get the job done, alright. Now, I-"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Crowler interjected. "That was it? Your 'Shining Draw?'" The rest of the student body was nodding their heads in agreement with the "good" doctor.

Ryan was puzzled. "Uh, yeah. What were you expecting?"

"You know, shining lights and whatnot! You call it a Shining Draw, but there are no lights! It was just a suspenseful draw! That's false advertisement!"

"I don't really see what you're getting so worked up about, doc," Ryan answered with a confused look on his face. "I don't call it a Shining Draw because I have supernatural powers. I call it that because my Shining Draw has almost never let me down. Now are you going to let me take my turn?"

Crowler backed off, muttering something about "no light" and "false advertisement." Ryan shook his head. "You gotta get your head back in the game, doc. Now, as I was saying before, I'll Tribute Mataza to Summon my Kiryu!"

**_Kiryu _**

**__****_Dark/ _**Level 5

**_Dragon/ Union_**

**_Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this card on the field, you can equip it to your "Dark Blade" as an Equip Spell Card, OR unequip the Union equipment and Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this card's effect, increase the ATK/DEF of the equipped monster by 900 points, and you can Tribute this card to allow the equipped monster to attack your opponent's Life Points directly this turn. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the monster that this card is equipped to is destroyed as a result of battle, destroy this card instead.)_**

**_ATK: 2000 DEF: 1500_**

A red dragon flew up with a roar, landing on the field with 2000 attack points. It glared at Crowler, who was laughing his head off.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Is this that card that you drew to defeat me? In case you hadn't noticed, my golem has over twice the amount of attack points as your pathetic dragon!"

"Actually, doc, Kiryu isn't the card I just drew."

"Well then, what is it? Tell me!"

"Oh, you'll find out. I'm about to play it."

"Tell me!"

"Dude, calm down!"

"TELL ME!"

"Okay, fine! Jeez, what the hell is your problem?! I play Monster Reborn to bring back my Dark Blade!"

**_Monster Reborn_**

**_Normal Spell Card_**

**_Target 1 monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it._**

The black-armored warrior arose again in Attack Mode, brandishing his twin swords. To those who could hear him, he was shouting "**I'm back!**"

"Yes, Blade, yes you are. Now then, I'll activate Kiryu's Union Effect. I can equip Kiryu to Blade and have him gain 900 attack points, for a grand total of 2700!" Dark Blade immediately hopped onto the red dragon, making it roar in excitement as his ATK rose.

"Alright, what's the angle he's getting at here?" Greg asked. "He summons two monsters whose combined attack isn't strong enough to take down Crowler's Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, with no other cards in his hand. Even when they're equipped, there's no way they can take out that golem."

"No idea," Karen replied. "Maybe as a last hurrah?"

"I'm surprised you even know the word 'hurrah,'" Will chuckled. Karen angrily shot him a look that clearly said _Shut up_.

"So, are you going to give up?" Crowler asked. "If this is the best you can do, I'm afraid you'll never end up at any academy at all. Not even a community college."

"Save it, doc, I ain't finished yet. Now Blade, attack!"

The dragon-riding warrior immediately flew straight at the giant golem. Shocked exclamations rang out among the stadium.

"He's actually attacking that thing?"

"What is he thinking?"

"What a loser!"

"Doesn't he know how much lower Dark Blade's attack points are compared to Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem?"

"So you are giving up!" Crowler cried gleefully. "I wouldn't have thought you to be the type to defeat yourself, but oh well! Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, destroy him!"

"Actually, doc, I'm activating Kiryu's Effect! By Tributing Kiryu, I can let Dark Blade attack you directly!" (5)

"Wait, what?!"

"Brilliant!" Alexis, Sarah, and Will all cried out. Nick was jumping up and down in excitement fistpumping and shouting "Yes! Yes! Yes!", while Greg and Karen could only look on with wide-open mouths. The rest of the stadium was torn; half were jumping and roaring in excitement, while the other half were shouting in disbelief.

"Alright, Blade, let'im have it!" Ryan shouted. The dragon roared as it barreled towards Crowler's monster, as the black warrior crouched from his position on Kiryu's back. As soon as the golem's fist and the dragon's body collided, he jumped off just as the dragon exploded past the machine. Seeing him get closer and closer, Crowler began shouting, "THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING! NONONONONONONO-!"

"Let's go Blade!" Ryan roared as the warrior brought his swords together. "Twin Sword Slash!"

The warrior obediently brought his swords in an X across Crowler's Disk hub. The doctor, still spewing his disbelief, fell back in an unceremonious heap.

___Crowler: 0 - Ryan: 400_  


The stadium roared in excitement as Blade jumped back next to Ryan before fading. Ryan grinned, pointed at Crowler, and stated, "Game. Over!"

"Wow," Alexis murmured to herself. "I can already tell this year's going to be very interesting…"

* * *

**Ok, so it's quite a bit longer than the first two chapters. I didn't actually think it would be this long. The dialog makes it four times as long. **

**Also, put your hands together for Yugioh Abridged! I love that parody.**

**1. Remember these people. They're very important.**

**2. I apologize if I suck at describing things/people. I don't really think I do a good job, but that's just my ****opinion.**

**3. We all know who he's talking about here, right?**

**4. Yep, totally stole that from Zexal. I don't really know how effective it will be in these stories though.**

**5. Probably missed the timing here, but hey, it creates drama, so whatever.**

**Unfortunately****, I don't really know when the next time I'll update will be... Exams are this week, and I just finished writing this chapter, so... we'll see.**

**Please give me feedback! Please!**


	4. Chapter 3: The Academy

**And I'm back! Back to fill the gaping void this story leaves inside me. I had originally meant to update three days ago on my birthday, but stuff I had procrastinated on caught back up to me.**

**New title, new summary, new chapters, new characters. It doesn't get much newer than this.**

**This was originally one chapter but got way too long. So I split it into two. They were kinda hard to write. Mostly because of the lack of card games.**

**And for anyone who is interested or who cares, Midnightscreamer pointed out that my prologue was mislabeled, so I scrapped the author's note for an actual prologue. Hopefully it's acceptable.**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!**

* * *

Chapter 3: The Academy

From the moment he first saw Duel Academy, Ryan knew he would love it here.

Of course, the trip to the Academy was a little hectic, what with all the people who had come up to him today, congratulating him on his victory over Crowler, asking him for dueling advice, or just saying how awesome they thought he was. And not just from his fellow freshmen, but from other upper-classmen too. It was nice at first, but it got old _real_ fast. He wasn't looking forward to the trip to the school.

As he boarded the helicopter, he immediately took a window seat so he could see everything. As other people boarded, he tried to make himself look as inconspicuous as possible, slouching down and looking out the window. It almost worked too. As the last people were getting on and nobody had taken the seat, he breathed a sigh of relief. As he did, a body slid into the seat.

"Alright, made it!" the new boy beside him cheered. Ryan sighed quietly. Hopefully he wouldn't pay much attention to-

"Hey, aren't you that kid who beat Crowler?" the boy asked suddenly as he peered at the Ryan. Some god had it out for him, he just knew it. Ryan groaned as he fully looked his seatmate. He had a white jacket with red edges and curly black hair. Ryan was surprised the most by how young this kid looked; it didn't look like this kid had his growth spurt yet.

"Yeah," Ryan answered, dreading what came next. "I thought so! Dude, the way you just came back from the edge of defeat… that was so cool! I mean, your little draw thing was a little unnecessary, but still! You must be really good to be able to pull a win from a situation like that."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa there! My Shining Draw is unnecessary? Why would you say something like that?"

The kid blinked at him. "Well, like Crowler said, nothing happened. You just drew. It got everyone excited and all, but was really just overly dramatic. Kind of like Crowler's clothes. Wait, what was your name again?"

In the middle of his answer, Ryan pulled out his quarter from his back pocket and began to absent-mindedly twirl it through his fingers. Was his Shining Draw really nothing? He decided to think on it later. "Ryan Anderson. And you?"

"Nick Wilson, the best Duelist to ever come out of prep school! Look out Duel Academy, here I come!" Ryan shook his head, smiling softly at Nick's enthusiasm.

"Oh yeah!" Nick exclaimed before leaning towards Ryan confidentially. "Did you know you had a Duel Spirit?" he whispered.

Ryan just looked at him. "_No_, I just love to talk to the air pretending it's a card that other people can't see!" he whispered back, words dripping with sarcasm.

Nick shrugged before whispering, "Just wanted to make sure. I have one too." He looked through the deck box on his hip and pulled out a card. "See?"

"Why are we whispering?" Ryan asked. Nick just shrugged again. Ryan looked at the card. It was a Masked Knight LV 3. He looked back up and saw the spirit standing next to Nick. The warrior gave a little salute before vanishing.

Nick looked a Ryan for a long moment while putting the card away before saying, "I get the feeling that you don't quite understand the magnitude of what you did. Do you know just how many people I've heard of that have beaten Crowler before?"

"Enlighten me."

"Just one. He transferred into the Academy about halfway through his first year. Crowler had this whole episode about it being irregular and demanded that he Duel him. Crowler lost, but the dude was put into Slifer Red 'cause Crowler didn't like him. He was the best Duelist in the school, too, but he never moved outta Red, can you believe it? Not one in three-and-a-half years. He graduated a couple years ago and is competing in the Pro Leagues now. You heard of Jaden Yuki?"

Had he? _Everyone_ had heard of Jaden Yuki. Said to be the best Duelist of his generation, he immediately had attracted large companies offering to sponsor him in the Pros, including the Kaiba Corporation. However, he had turned them all down to accept a small company's offer. When asked why, he reportedly said that he just trusted his gut and his gut told him to sign with that company. To think that he had done something that nobody but Jaden Yuki had done…

The helicopter blades started to turn and they slowly lifted into the air. The intercom crackled to life. "This is your captain speaking. I would like to inform you all that we are on our way to Academy Island." The students all cheered as the helicopter started flying.

* * *

Ryan gazed out the window looking down at the ocean. Nick and most of the other students had started sleeping early into the journey, but Ryan could never sleep in a helicopter. Or a plane. Or a car. Or basically anything that moved while he tried to sleep. A spot of color caught his eye. Could that be…?

The intercom suddenly rang out as the pilot spoke, waking everyone up. "Attention, new Duel Academy students. If you look outside your windows, you'll see your new home away from home."

"Cool!" most people, including Nick, shouted, as they leaned over towards the nearest window to see.

The pilot spoke again. "Now now, I know you're excited, but don't shove. Quite a sight, ey?"

And it was. There was a forest covering the front half of the island except for the building in the middle and there was a large smoking volcano on the back half.

Ryan really hoped that the volcano was dormant. Otherwise, it looked awesome. He knew he'd love it. Unless that volcano erupted.

"Now then, fasten your seat belts and sit your seats back to an upright position. We're going in to land. Next stop, Academy Island." This time, everyone cheered, including Ryan.

When they disembarked the helicopter, they were immediately ushered into the large building. There, they were formed into lines where they would receive all their gear that pertained to the dorm they were in. In the general chaos, Ryan lost track of Nick.

Eventually, Ryan got to the desk. "Name?" the perky woman behind the desk asked. Her nametag read _Miss Dorothy_.

"Ryan Anderson," he replied. "So you're the kid who beat Dr. Crowler, hmm?" _Oh no, not her too…_ Ryan groaned internally. "I must say, that takes skill. Normally, that means you'd get directed into the Obelisk Blue dorm, but-"

Ryan cut her off. "Let me guess, Crowler didn't like that idea."

"Well, yes," Miss Dorothy smiled. "He insisted you won because of luck, so he thought you belonged in the Slifer Red dorm. However, the Chancellor disagreed, and wanted to put you in Blue."

"So why didn't he?" Ryan couldn't help but ask.

"Well, you see, in order to get into Blue, you have to pass the written and the Dueling exam- which you did, with flying colors I might add- but you must also complete prep school. Those who do go into Obelisk Blue, while the rest slide into Ra Yellow or Slifer Red. ou, good sir, are headed for the Yellow dorm. Wait here while I get some things for you."

"So instead of wearing two of my favorite colors, I get to wear yellow. Fantastic," Ryan muttered as he watched Dorothy walk away. He'd never really liked yellow, though he supposed he'd get used to it. He'd have to.

Dorothy soon came back with a couple Ra Yellow uniforms, a Portable Digital Assistant (PDA), and an Academy-issued Duel Disk with yellow trimmings and buttons. "Here you go!" she sang out as she handed them to him. He thanked her and headed over to the nearest bathroom to change.

* * *

Later when everyone was done changing, they all headed into the auditorium. Once there, the giant screen facing end turned on and a man's head appeared. He looked young, late twenties to early thirties, with short black hair. As soon as Ryan saw him, a big smile grew on the new Yellow student's face.

"Hello, and welcome my students! I'm Chancellor Brown, the headmaster here, and _you_ are the best and brightest young Duelists in the world. Now please, get yourselves settled in at your assigned dorms. I think you'll find them quite comfortable; depending upon how well you ranked, of course!" He chuckled and the screen winked out. As the students were rushing out of the auditorium to find their dorms, Ryan caught sight of a familiar face.

He soon caught up with Nick after fighting his way through other kids, realizing for the first time that he stood a head taller than the other boy. "Hey dude, what's up?" He took a closer look at his new friend's face. "Something bothering you?"

Nick blinked, realizing who was talking to him. "It's nothing. Is this place great or what?"

"No kidding," Ryan grinned. He then noticed what Nick was wearing. "So, you're in Yellow, too, huh?" He couldn't miss the swift look of disappointment that swept across Nick's face before he nodded. "Alright, tell me what's bothering you. I can tell you feel bad about something."

Nick opened his mouth to deny it at first, but then reconsidered. "Well, all my friends are in Obelisk Blue. I was the only one not to make it in."

"Were your exam grades not as good as theirs?" Ryan asked, raising an eyebrow. Nick sighed before answering. "No, I had the highest grades out of all of us. It's actually because I'm two years younger than the rest of you guys."

"Well, that explains why you're so short," Ryan laughed, not able to resist. Nick didn't look so amused.

"Hey, you two!" a voice shouted out to them. They turned and saw an older black-haired Yellow student walking towards them. "Are you guys lost or something?"

"I guess you could say that," Nick answered as Ryan managed to control himself. "We just got here… and it seems every other kid has left us behind. Weird, I could have sworn they were just here…"

"The other freshmen? They went off to do whatever. Hey, you two want me to show you around the island? I'll even do it free of charge!" The older student said with a big grin.

"You usually charge for tours?" Ryan asked.

"No, that was actually a joke. I mean, some do, but they're usually upperclassmen. Anyway, want to accept my offer?"

Nick and Ryan looked at each other before both giving a nod. The older Yellow grinned. "Great! The name's Damian, Ra Yellow sophomore. Yours?"

"I'm Nick, and this is Ryan. The guy who beat Crowler." Nick explained with a tiny grin. The two of them shook hands.

"I gotta admit, that was one impressive win," Damian said as he shook Ryan's hand. "I bet you've heard more of this complimentary stuff in the last few hours than any other time in your life."

Ryan sighed. "You know, it was nice at first, but then it wouldn't stop. I've heard enough for a lifetime."

"Well, lemme tell you right now that you're a great Duelist. You better get used to those kinds of words 'cause you're going to be hearing them all through your long career," Damian said seriously. Ryan paused for a moment. Did he really have that much skill? Was he really going to live up to Damian's prediction?

"And me too, right? I'm going to be even better than him, right? Right?" Nick asked, popping up between the two of them. The seriousness suddenly defused as Ryan could help himself from grinning as Damian hastily agreed that, yes, Nick would be a great Duelist (although he never said he was going to be better than Ryan).

"Alright, the welcoming dinner's gonna be soon. So let's get going, shall we?" Damain asked with another grin.

"Welcoming dinner?" Nick asked. Damian grinned yet again. "Basically this big dinner that welcomes you guys to Duel Academy! It's just like it sounds. You guys are smart, you probably already figured that out. Actually, if you had, then why did you ask? Okay, let's go!"

The three of them started to head off. Damian suddenly stopped, facepalming himself. "I'm an idiot! I forgot all about the main building. Well, this-" he gestured to the building behind him "- is where most of the action takes place. This building not only looks pretty cool, but it also is where the classes are, and where everyday business is done. You'll pretty much use this building everyday you're here… And thus ends this rather pointless introduction to the main building. Seriously, I didn't tell you anything you probably don't know already. _Again_. Alright, _now_ we can start walking."

* * *

**And the tour continues next chapter! Review, por favor!**


	5. Chapter 4: The Academy Continued

**And here's part 2.**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!**

* * *

Chapter 4: The Academy Continued

They arrived in front of a magnificent blue building next to a lake. Damian didn't waste any time, immediately launching into an explanation.

"This is the Obelisk Blue boys' dorm. Doctor Crowler is in charge of the boys' dorm, and Miss Fontaine is in charge of the girls' dorm, (1) which we will see in a minute, but not get _too_ close to; it's just over that way. This is for the best of all the students in each class. You can, of course, move up and down dorms based on your grades and how well you Duel. In my opinion, the Blues are generally pompous idiots who mostly got in there because of their parents' connections-" Ryan took a swift look at Nick to see his reaction, and was relieved to see him look intrigued "- but there are a few cool guys in the dorm. And here is the Blue girls' dorm. Looks pretty much the same, right? Well, it mostly is."

"Question," Nick interjected as Damian stopped to draw a breath. "How do you move up and down dorms?"

"The Academy has frequent promotion exams that test people who want to move up dorms. If you want to move down dorms, then no problem, you can pretty much go live in a lower dorm. But you have to win in a promotion exam to move up," Damian explained. Nick nodded, deep in thought.

* * *

Damian led them to an old building that was starting to fall apart. "This is the Abandoned Dorm. It used to be the Obelisk Blue dorm until a fire burned it down one night about nine years ago. Thankfully, there were no fatalities… At least that was the official statement was. The kids that have been missing since then are overseas studying. It's only mere coincidence that nobody's seen them since the fire." He looked at the slightly horrified faces of the freshmen before busting out in laughter. "Hahahaha! You guys should see your faces right now!"

The two younger Yellows looked at each other confusedly. "So… Is that the actual story?" Nick asked hesitantly.

"No," Damian snorted. "Well, yes, the dorm burned down about nine years ago, but nobody was hurt. Apparently one winter day when it was empty, like everyone was in classes or just out of the building, one of the fires somehow got out of control and the place burned down. Now it's off-limits. You could get expelled if you get caught trespassing."

As he spoke the last sentences, Ryan noticed Nick staring intently at the building. "Don't even think about it," he warned the younger boy. Nick said nothing.

* * *

The next stop was two small red buildings. "These true homes away from home are the Slifer Red dorms," Damian explained as he showed them the two identical buildings on the edge of the cliff facing away from the ocean. "Professor Banner and Miss Dorothy are in charge of the two dorms. (2) The one on the right is the girls' dorm, and the other is the boys'. They're nothing special- at all. Literally, they're little more than outhouses where you can sleep and stuff. Barely livable. I think they make them like that so that the Slifer students have motivation to move dorms. It's also referred to as the 'drop-out dorm' 'cause so many students drop out if they can't move out of the dorm by the middle of their sophomore year."

"You speak from experience?" Ryan asked.

"I was originally put in the Slifer dorm my freshman year. I moved up the Ra Yellow not too long before the end of last year. I was so happy when I finally passed the promotion exam. It would take all day to tell you how much better Ra is than Slifer. You guys don't know how great you have it, just skipping over Slifer."

"You poor thing," Nick said, half-mockingly, half-sympathetically. "It's okay now. Soon we'll all be in Obelisk Blue and show any and all arrogant pricks what real Dueling's about!" They all laughed.

* * *

"Since you already saw the harbor, there's no reason to show you again. Not to mention that the volcano is kinda difficult to get to and just a _little_ dangerous. So, that only leaves one last place: your new home, Ra Yellow.

"So it's not on the scale of the Blue dorm, but lemme tell ya, it's a helluva lot better than the Red dorm. It's run by Professors Hibiki and… uh… whatshisname, uh… it begins with an 's'…" Ryan and Nick sweatdropped as they watched Damain try and remember the name of the professor. "Uh… The sad thing is that I know this… wait… sad…sad… Sartyr! That's it! I have no idea how I made the connection between 'sad' and 'Sartyr'… Anyway, boys by Sartyr, girls by Hibiki. As you already know, Yellow is for the students who are better Duelists than the Reds but not as good as the Blues or didn't have the connections or go to prep school like the Blues. We're all a bunch of average Joes. More or less. Now, who's up for some food? The welcoming dinner's almost started and I'm famished! Let's go before they start without us!" Damian immediately began running towards the boys' dorm, catching the two freshmen off-guard.

"Hey, wait for us!" Nick protested as they began running after him. Damian simply laughed as he reached the doors. He began to shut them before Ryan, the faster of the two, was able to put his foot in between the door and the doorframe. A moment later, Nick caught up.

"Alright, the mess hall's this way," Damian explained. "We better hurry, they've probably started without us already." And sure enough, when they reached the end of the hall, the rest of the students were already seated at tables, about to eat.

"Ah, it appears we have some latecomers," the only adult in the room stated as he rose out of his seat to address the newcomers. Although his tone was serious, Ryan noticed the kind look in his eyes.

He turned to Damian. "I never thought that you of all people would ever be late to a meal, Mr. Wilson!"

Damian laughed. "I was just showing these new students around. Besides, I'd travel to hell and back twice to eat some of your food again, professor!" Ryan couldn't help wondering if he had forgotten his name again.

The professor gave a small smile before turning towards Ryan and Nick. "So, you are the new students? Welcome to Ra Yellow. I hope Damian gave you a satisfactory tour."

Nick nodded. "He sure knows a lot about the school."

"Well, sit down anywhere you like. I cooked the food myself. It's time to enjoy!"

* * *

The food was delicious. Ryan groaned as he finished the fifth course. (3) He looked over at Damian, who, incredibly, was still eating with no signs of slowing down. "How do you stay so skinny?" he asked.

Damian stopped piling food into his mouth long enough to say "High metabolism" before turning back to his food.

Ryan looked around the hall. All the other Yellows had finished eating, including Professor Sartyr, and were watching Damian eat as if it was a TV show.

"Where do you think he puts it all?" Nick whispered.

"Probably has hollow legs," Ryan answered. "And head, and arms, and stomach…"

Professor Sartyr cleared his throat and rose again. Everyone stopped watching Damian and focused on the professor. Damian, on the other hand, continued to eat, although at a slightly slower rate so he could hear. "For those of you who _are_ done, it's time to start heading back to your rooms. You should have gotten your designated rooms when you picked up your uniforms. You should all be in your separate rooms no later than 8:30."

"Uh, I never got designated a room," one freshman called out anxiously. All the other freshman nodded.

Sartyr sighed. "Check the inside pockets of your jackets."

For a moment, the only noises in the room were fabric rustling and Damian eating. Then there was a collective sigh of relief as little papers were miraculously found. Satyr shook his head. Every year it was the same old, same old.

"Now that you all have your room numbers, I wish you good night." The professor exited the mess hall and walked down the hallway to his own room.

The moment his door closed, Damian let loose a huge belch. "Whooh, excuse me! And that's the sign that the tank is full. The professor cooks the best food in the whole school," he informed a slightly impressed Ryan and Nick. "We'd better get to our rooms. People usually only prowl the hallways and grounds on the first and last days of the school year and it's not good if they catch you outside after it gets dark."

It turned out that Ryan's room had Damian on one side and Nick on the other. Damian was especially elated when they found out.

"Alright! This means I can spend more times with my favorite freshman!" Damian laughed, draping his arms around his two friends. "Stick with me and I'll show you a great time!"

"Can you do it without crushing us beneath you?" Nick asked, squirming under Damian's weight.

"I need to digest my food, so I'll be hitting the hay a little early tonight. Try not to have too much time without me!" With that final comment, Damian removed his arms from the freshmen and went into his room, closing the door.

"Well then…" Nick trailed off. "What a day, huh?"

"Yeah," Ryan agreed. "This is going to be a great year."

"And we're going to spend it with a crazy sophomore who eats as if he needs to eat for a family of seven," Nick muttered.

Ryan cracked a smile. "Well, they say that the greatest of minds are the craziest people."

* * *

**1. In the anime, all girls, regardless of skill, were automatically put into Obelisk Blue. In this story I have them put into the three dorms based on their rank.**

**2. In the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX manga, Midori Hibiki is the head of the Slifer Red dorm. Since I didn't want to create new staff (partiality out of laziness), I moved Hibiki to Ra Yellow and put Miss Dorothy in charge of of the Slifer girls.**

**3. In the second GX episode, Obelisk and Ra students had five-course meals.**

**Again, these two chapters were hard to write because of the lack of Duels. Hope I didn't disappoint too badly.**

**Honestly, I have no idea what's coming next or when it will be. I have ideas galore, but my best ideas always turn into disasters. My friends would be able to tell you all sorts of stories.**


End file.
